Vee Jay 90th birthday

The Vaucluse Junior, affectionately known as the Vee-Jay (VJ), was a 11ft 6” two-handed skiff conceived by Sylvester (Sil) Rohu and designed by Charles Sparrow in 1931. The design spawned tens of thousands of builds across Australia and overseas with competitive racing until the 1990s. Champions of the class continued on to win Olympic gold, world championships and the 1983 America’s Cup (John Bertand).

To celebrate the 90th birthday of the VJ, Vaucluse Yacht Club (founded by Sil Rohu in 1939) will be hosting a special event on the morning of Saturday the 11th of December 2021 featuring a display of classic VJs from across the era, a breakfast Q&A with some of the original champions of the class and a VJ sail past.

Some of Double Bay’s members began their sailing careers in the VJ and they are invited to attend this special event.

Details:

Date: Saturday 11th December 2021

Time: 8.30am rigging, 10am breakfast Q&A

Location: Vaucluse Yacht Club cnr Marine Parade and Robertson Place, Watsons Bay

Free with registration - https://www.vaucluseyachtclub.com.au/vj90

Volly of the week

Double Bay Sailing Club is managed and run entirely by volunteers. As the saying goes, “many hands make light work.

This week we are featuring James Tudball. Each week after racing, James can be seen returning to the waterfront to help other sailors with trolleys and hauling their boats up the ramp with a smile. Sometimes, the simplest acts of kindness are what binds our sailing community together.

The club is full of people making wonderful contributions around the place, and sometimes behind the scenes. Do you know of someone who deserves a mention? If so, email us and tell us why they should be club member of the week.

Twilight Sailing

Twilight sailing is on tonight and the Brett Beyer Training Program is confirmed. This means a top mark will be laid for sprint racing, with a start determined on the water. A two minute starting sequence will apply unless otherwise advised on the water.

Last week we had over 20 boats attend for a fantastic twilight session. This week, the forecast (at the time of writing) is a 16-18 knots nor-easter! You’d be mad to miss the smile on Pat Levy’s face in this!

More drinks?

Members are reminded to pay for the drinks taken from the club fridges, including at the BBQ after club championship racing. Bottles of wine may be provided on the table at the BBQ, and (only) these will be complimentary.

Last drinks!

Just kidding! However, we would like you to RSVP to the upcoming Christmas party to assist with catering.

The party will be held on Saturday 11 December, 5:30-11:30pm.

Sustainability

Behind the scenes, the club has been working through a checklist of items based on World Sailing’s Guide to Sustainable Sailing Clubs.

Some of the initiatives that have been undertaken include installing solar energy on the club’s roof, installing a contamination control lid on the container deposit scheme bin, repurposing old sails and recycling lost property. This week you will also notice a tap has been installed at the front of the clubhouse to fill drink bottles with filtered water and soap dispensers are being installed in the showers in order to reduce the unnecessary use of plastic bottles at the club.

There are still some improvements to be made, including better practices around waste management. Members are asked to minimise the waste that is brought to the club and to ensure that rubbish is placed in the appropriate bins – we have three bins: recycling (yellow lid), landfill (red lid) and container deposit (electronic scanner lid).

If you have any suggestions to further improve sustainability at the club, please email Katie McHugh.

Lost Gear: 201540

A radial sail (number 201540) and a yellow rooster mainsheet belonging to Alistair Sutherland has gone missing, last seen on the lovely NE day 2 weeks ago. If anyone has seen this equipment, can you please return it to Alistair, or let him know where it is?

Regatta confirmations and information(s)

Regattas are a great way to travel, bond with other club members, and even make new friends. Rod Barnes is coordinating the logistics, and in some cases accommodation, for club members attending the following upcoming events.

Can you please confirm with him if you are intending to attend any of the following?

(Open) State Championships | 4-5 December 2021 – will be held at Georges River Sailing Club. Please email Rod Barnes this week if you are attending in order to coordinate transport the DBSC contingent. 

State Masters Championships | 5-6 February 2022 – will be held at Bay Sailing Centre, Port Stephens. Rod Barnes is organising accommodation and coordinating boat transport. Please let him know ASAP if you intend to participate in this event as accommodation must be confirmed in the upcoming week.

If anyone wants to know more information about this weekend, Rod will do a Q&A at 12:30 on Saturday (27 November) at the club.

Australian Laser Masters | 25-28 February 2022 – will be held at Westernport Yacht Club on Balnarring Beach, Victoria (approximately 70 kilometres from Melbourne). The event will be run from 25-28 February 2022 and will be preceded by a two day coaching clinic 22-23 February. The Notice of Race is here. 
Once again, please contact Rod Barnes if you intend to participate in this event.

For more information, or to confirm your participation in any of these events, please email rodbarnes@dbsc.com.au.

New World Masters Ranking from 2023

ALCA is changing the ranking arrangement for ILCA World Masters Championships to apply from World Masters 2023 which will be held in Pattaya, Thailand in February 2023.

The new ranking policy is based on results from the previous Australian Laser Masters Championships. 

For the February 2023 World Masters in Pattaya, Thailand ranking will be based on the results of the Australian Masters February 2022 Westernport YC as per the new policy.

Coming up next...

Wednesday 24 November - Twilight sprints | BBTP

Saturday 27 November – Club Championships 3 & 4 | BBQ

Wednesday 1 December - Twilight sprints

Saturday 4 December – Sprints / State Championships @ Georges River

Wednesday 8 December - Twilight sprints

Saturday 11 December – Tyrell and Rousso Races | Christmas Party

Wednesday 15 December - Twilight sprints

Saturday 18 December – Sprints (Sail GP)   

Wednesday 22 December - Twilight sprints  

The club calendar can be viewed (and subscribed to) here.